Penn Presbyterian Medical Center is a hospital located in the University City section of West Philadelphia. It was founded by Reverend Ephraim D. Saunders in 1871 and formally joined the University of Pennsylvania Health System in 1995. Penn Presbyterian is spread out on a campus bounded by Market Street, Powelton Avenue, 38th Street, and Sloan Street.HistoryPresbyterian was founded in 1871 by the Alliance of Philadelphia Presbyteries as a 45-bed facility on. The Reverend Dr. Ephraim D. Saunders, a Presbyterian minister, dedicated the land in memory of his son Courtland, who was shot and killed in service on September 21, 1862, in a battle during the Civil War. Reverend Saunders said at the dedication, "A few days before the battle of Antietam... he passed with me from his tent in the forest... In view of the perils of war... he recommended that in the case of his death... the property should all be donated to some prominent... charity." The incorporators declared the purpose was "to provide medical and surgical aid and nursing for the sick and disabled..." Care and nursing was granted to the indigent of Philadelphia, funded by donations from individuals and Presbyterian churches, to fulfill its Christian mission. This commitment was renewed in 1952, when the trustees of the Hospital voted against moving to the more affluent suburbs, choosing to remain in West Philadelphia. The original name was "Presbyterian Hospital of Philadelphia." It has since grown into a 300-bed institution on with various nationally recognized medical institutes, specialty centers and research programs.Presbyterian's School of Nursing, founded in 1887, has a long history of imbuing the medical center with an increased awareness and importance placed on the value on nursing in the treatment of patients. As a result, nurses at Presbyterian are recognized by the medical center for improving the quality of care it strives to provide.
